City worksite incident leads to personal injury claim

A Philadelphia woman who claims she was injured after falling into a hole in a city street is suing a contracting firm, the city and a municipal agency.

Philadelphia attorney Leonard R. Parks, of the Law Offices of Parks & Associates, filed the premises liability complaint Sept. 20 at the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas on behalf of Celestine Shands.

The defendants in the lawsuit are General Asphalt Paving of Northeast Philadelphia, the city of Philadelphia and Philadelphia Gas Works.

According to the lawsuit, Shands was crossing the 1900 block of Hicks Street back on April 3, 2010, when she suddenly tripped and fell over a large hole that was being excavated by the city, its workers and the contractors.

Shands allegedly sustained injuries to her neck, back and leg, and experienced an exacerbation of a seizure disorder, all of which caused her to have to spend various sums of money on medical attention and treatment, the lawsuit states.

As a further result of her injuries, Shands has been prevented from attending to her regular duties, routines and occupation and has therefore suffered pecuniary loss and diminution of her quality of life, the suit claims.

The lawsuit accuses the defendants of negligence for failing to warn passersby of the unsafe condition that existed in the roadway, failing to maintain a safe area for ingress and egress and failing to maintain the safety of public areas.

Shands demands judgment against the defendants in an amount not to exceed $50,000, plus interest and related court costs.

The matter is scheduled for an arbitration hearing in late May 2012.

The case number is 110902109.